Automatic gate-valve for rain conductor-pipes.



PATENTED APR, 14, 1903.

J. KELLER. AUTOMATIC GATE VALVE FOR RAIN CONDUCTOR PIPES.

' I D a 11 2.

//vv'/vr0/? a 7Z e By ATTORNEYS.

NITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN KELLER, OF OTTOVILLE, OHIO.

AUTOMATIC GATE-VALVE F'ORRAIN CONDUCTOR-PIPES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 725,451, dated April14, 1903.

Application filed December 11, 1902. Serial No. 134,772. (No model.)

To on whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN KELLER, a citizen of the United States, and aresident of Ottoville, in the county of Putnam and State of Ohio, haveinvented a new and Improved Automatic Gate-Valve for Rain Conductor-fPipes, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.Rainwater when pure is preferably used as 'a potable liquid in: manyplaces throughout therewith and in some localities is rendered 7 soimpure as to be unfit for drinking or cooking purposes.

The object of this invention is to provide a novel, simple, andinexpensive attachment for a rain-water drain-spout or conductorpipethat will automatically operate to prevent the fouled water that firstwashes the roof of a building from passing into the storage-cistern orlike receptacle, and after a predetermined quantity of the rainfall hascleansed the roof to change the flow of clean water, so as to conduct itinto the storage-receptacle.

The invention consists in the n0velc0nstruction and combination ofparts, as is hereinafter described, and defined in the appended claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part ofthis specification, in which similar characters of reference indicatecorresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the improvement applied to-arain-water conductor and shown in normal adjustment for cutting off theflow of impure rain-water from the storage-receptacle. the attachment,showing the parts adjusted for the flow of clean water from the roof ofthe building to a storage-receptacle and Fig. 3 is a sectional side viewof the device, representing the working parts adjusted as indicated inFig. 2;

The rain-water conductor 5, that is shown broken away, in complete formextends, as usual, from the gutter or eaves-trough on a Fig. 2 is a sideview of building (not shown) toward the ground and thence to areceptacle for. conveyance of rainwater into the latter.

The improvement is introduced into the rain-water conductor 5 as aportion thereof and may be located at any desired point therein.Preferably the hollow body portion 6 of the improved attachment isrectangular in cross-section, having suitable length, and is connectedat its ends in a water-tight manner with the ends of the conductor 5. Inthe front Wall of the body portion 6 an opening Ct is formed, the upperand lower edges of which are parallel with each other, and, as indicatedin Fig. 1, the opening a extends the full width of the passage throughthe body 6.

A two-part valve is an essential detail of the attachment and, as shown,comprises two plate-like gates 7 7, joined together at their lowertransverse edges, preferably at an angle of forty-five degrees. Thetwo-part valve is held to rock in the opening a by a shaft 8, aflixed tothe valve at the angle between the two gates 7 7, said shaft havingprojecting journal ends that loosely pass through opposite perforationsin the side Walls of the body 6,-whereby the gates are held'to rock, andthus dispose either gate within the opening ct, which they nearly equalin dimensions.

Two rock-arms 9, preferably bent from a single metal rod, so as toprovide a journal I) where theydiverge from each other, are oppositelyaffixed upon the projecting journal ends of the transverseshaft 8, oneof said arms being extended beyond the journal-shaft, as at 9*, toreceive an adjustable weight 10.

Upon the gate 7 one end of a water-delivering spout 11 is secured, thespout passing through the gate, so as to receive water that may bedeposited in the angular space defined by the divergent gates 7 7 andthe opposite side walls of the conductor 5, between which said gatesrock. The spout 11 is bent so as to project the free lower end thereofabove a water-receiving vessel 12, the bail-handle 13 of which isrockably connected with thejournal i Two stationary guide-bars let areheld vertically at the front of the body 6 near the corners thereof,'and these guides are loosely engaged by looped projections c, securedupon the exterior of the vessel 12, so that thelatter vessel is adaptedfor a vertical sliding movement upon the guides. Normally the emptyvessel 12 is held elevated on the guides 14 by the gravity of theweight-block 10, the descent of said weight and of the arm 9 beingdefined by the contact of the gate 7 upon the rear wall of the body 5,as represented in Fig. 1. In the bottom wall of the vessel 12 a smallperforation cl is formed, through which water may slowly drop andgradually empty the vessel if the latter is filled with water.

In operation, assuming that the device is adjusted as shown in Fig. l,the vessel 12 being empty, then the contact of the gate 7 with the rearwall of the hollow body 5 disposes the gate 7 in vertical position andwithin the opening ct. The fall of rain upon the roof of the buildinghaving the improvement will wash the roof, and this impure water will bearrested and occupy the space between the gates '7 7. An accumulation offoul water in said space is conveyed into the vessel 12- through thespout 11 and adds weight to the vessel, so that the heft of theweight-block 10 will be preponderated by the accumulation of water inthe vessel and the latter will descend until arrested at the bottom endsof the guides 14, which movement will rock the gate 7 into the opening aand permit a free flow of clean water down the conductor 5.

The perforation d may be closed until the rainfall ceases and then beopened to permit the gradual escape of the liquid contents of the vessel12, or if the perforation is quite fine and the vessel is of a capacityto require several hours to empty it through the perforation the lattermay remain open continuously.

As soon as the vessel 12 is emptied sufficiently to allow theweight-block 10 to overbalance the vessel and the bail thereon saidvessel will be automatically elevated and the device will be adjustedfor a repetition of the operation.

Having described my invention,I claim as new and desire to secure byLetters Patent 1. The combination with a hollow body having an openingon one side, of a valve comprising two angularly-divergent gates, heldtogether to rock at their junction in said opening, the front one ofsaid gates being normally held over said opening, and the otherdiagonally disposed across the central opening of the pipe to close thesame, a spout in the front one of said gates, a guided vessel into whichthe spout discharges water from the space between the gates of thetwo-part valve, a lever for rocking said gates, means for pivotallysupporting the vessel at one end of said lever, and a weight on saidlever to counterbalance the weight of the bucket, as specified andshown.

2. The combination with a hollow body,

forming a portion of a rain-conductor and having an opening in one wallthereof, of a valve comprising two angularly-divergent gates, ajournal-shaft adapted to pivot the valve in the opening so as to rocktherein and impose the inner gate diagonally against the wall of thehollow body opposite the opening therein and bring the outer gate to aposition closing said opening, a spout in the outer gate, a guidedvessel into which the spout discharges water from the space between thegates, and means for loosely connecting the vessel with thejournal-shaft, so as to rock the valve and open the passage through thebody, when the vessel is surcharged with water, and means for rockingsaid valve and counterbalancing said bucket.

3. The combination with a tubular rainconductor, and a rectangularwalled body forming a part of the conductor, said body having arectangular aperture in one of the walls, of a valve comprising twoangularlydivergent gates, a journal-shaft engaged with the valve at thejunction of its two gates, said shaft pivoting the valve in the openingso as to rock therein and impose the end of one gate upon a wall of thehollow body opposite the opening, a spout in one of said gates, a guidedvessel having a bail-handle, and also having a fine perforation in thebottom wall, a forked arm fixed on the ends of the journal-shaft andloosely connected with the bail-handle, one member ofsaid forked armextending beyond the journal-shaft, and acounterbalanceWeight adjustablymounted on said extension.

4. The combination with a hollow body forming a portion of arain-conductor and having an opening in one wall thereof, of a valvecomprising two angularly-divergent gates, a journaled shaft at the lowerend of the opening, adapted to pivot the valve at that point so as torock in said opening and impose the inner gate diagonally against thewall of the hollow body opposite the opening, and bring the outer gateto a position closing said opening, a spoutin the outer gate, a vesselinto which the spout discharges water from the space between the gates,means for loosely connecting the vessel with the journal-shaft wherebyto rock the valve and open the passage through the body when the vesselis surcharged with water, a lever for rocking said valve, and anadjustable Weight carried on said lever for counterbalancing the weightof said bucket, as set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

JOHN KELLER.

\Vitn esses:

HQRACE R. REEVE, JOHN F. LINDEMANN.

